The Road Less Traveled
by LilNyNyify
Summary: Pain. Indescribable, utter agony bears down on Sakura Haruno as she is faced with a dire decision. Become stronger as the jinjuriki host to Kiyoma, twin of the tailed demon Kurama, or watch her loved ones and herself suffer death at the hands of the sinister organization, the Akatsuki. Sakura x Multi Pairings. R & R!
1. Chapter 1

In hindsight, Sakura realized the mission went to shit the minute they made contact with their mission's targets. The mission had been screwed the moment Sakura demolished the seal on the cave entrance to the Akatsuki hideout,—expecting, based on their intel, two Akatsuki members and a worse for wear Gaara—only to find eight Akatsuki members in the middle of a forbidden extraction ritual and a presumably dead Kazekage. Immediately, Sasori of the Sand and Itachi Uchiha had dashed down from the ginormous fingertips of a strange statue and ensued a long and grueling battle with Team Kakashi.

Sweat dripped down her forehead as Sakura felt the chakra strings attached to her body jerk her to the left to avoid another shower of senbon needles. Her breathing was haggard and uneven, and she fought for each breath. Muscles screaming in protest, she sent a minute pulse of stimulating chakra to keep them flexible. Her opponent, Sasori, simply gazed at her with a bored and slightly irritated stare.

"Are you ready to give up yet, girl?" Sasori questioned, "It's very convenient that you brought the Nine-Tails with you as well. Saves us the trouble of having to find him. Now, it's simply a matter of extracting his demon."

"I'll never let you get near Naruto, I won't allow it!" Sakura spit out harshly. She didn't know who this man was exactly, but his ill intent towards Naruto made her anger _burn_. How he could want to hurt such a caring and outgoing person she didn't understand, but she'd be damned if she didn't give her everything in protecting her team mate.

Snarling, Sakura tensed to spring towards the man, but Lady Chiyo's wizened voice and chakra strings froze her in her tracks. "Sakura. Do not let his words rile you, child. Although no part of Sasori can feel any emotion, he is devious and intelligent, and logically understands the human heart. Keep a level head, or else you will be killed."

The warning, however true, made Sakura bite her lip in frustration. She couldn't get in close enough to land one good hit, and it was driving her cra—Sakura was cut off from her previous thought, having to leap out of the way to avoid being skewered by knives ejected from slits in the Third Kazekage's puppet arms. Landing a few feet away, Sakura pinned her gaze back on Sasori wearily.

"I didn't think you were so foolish enough to ignore me, kunoichi." Sasori drawled, flexing his fingers absentmindedly.

The movement caused one of his puppets to crank their head unnaturally. Even though his words were of the annoyed selection, his inflection fell flat, and it sent a tremble of fear down Sakura's spine. Landing soundlessly near the young kunoichi, Chiyo quickly called the girl's attention.

"Us being on the defensive is neither gaining ground nor helpful. We're wasting time and energy. I need to maneuver you in close enough to do damage, but to do that calls for great dexterity and flexibility my dear. Are you capable?" Chiyo murmured lowly. Both women leapt and dodged an array of kunai projected at them with deathly speed.

"What are you whispering about over there, hm Granny Chiyo? Come on and fight me you old bag of bones." Sasori taunted lazily. There was an air of detached arrogance, with an undercurrent of blood lust coating his words that made Sakura's stomach roil. Meeting Chiyo's eyes with determination, Sakura replied, "Yes, Lady Chiyo."

—-

Deidara watched the battle below unfold with mild interest. _'Sasori will no doubt win. These Konoha Leaf ninja have no idea what's coming, yeah.'_ Deidara thought, a slow smirk growing on his handsome features. Sliding his eyes to the fight taking place a few ways away, cobalt blue eyes narrowed at the graceful form of Itachi Uchiha. He seemed to be holding up well against the Kyuubi brat and the Copy ninja, which irked him to no end. Scoffing, he hoped the Leaf brats somehow managed to kill the Uchiha.

 _'He's so annoying, yeah. He thinks he's so great because he has that damn Sharingan, but even i'm better than he is, and he has no appreciation for the beauty of my art—'_

"Deidara," Konan intoned warningly, "Your chakra is ebbing. Remain focused on our mission at hand." They had come too far to let some Leaf ninja dissolve their plans for world peace. Neither she nor Pein would allow it. Grumbling, Deidara refocused his attention on channeling his chakra into the sinister statue on which they were standing.

"Get out of my way!" Naruto roared senselessly, slashing a red chakra cloaked fist at the eldest Uchiha's face. The man simply burst into a flock of black crows, reassembling a few feet away. His impassive gaze only served to anger the blond eve further.

"Give Gaara back!" Naruto bellowed again, stiffening and snarling when a third tail bubbled out from his chakra cloak. Kakashi was now worried, and not for the Akatsuki member in front of them. Yamato hadn't accompanied them on this mission, so he only had very very limited ways of controlling and curbing Naruto's anger. He feared that Naruto's anger and hurt for Gaara would lead to the fourth tail revealing itself, causing him to plummet into destructive insanity.

Kakashi was just about to call out to Naruto when he heard the female Suna elder let out a scream from across the cave. His heart dropped out of his chest when the scream of his only female student's name left the elder's lips for a second time.

"Sakura...!" Kakashi called semi-calmly. He heard the tremor in his voice and decided to spare a glance to check on Sakura, only to have to spring into the air to avoid a gigantic Katon and whistling Rasengan explode on impact. Landing and sticking to the nearby wall, Kakashi cursed fluently. Using his momentum, Kakashi pushed off the cave wall and dove back into the fray that was Naruto and the murderous Uchiha.

Sakura heard a faint gurgling noise while someone screamed her name rather loudly. Realizing the gurgling was coming from her, Sakura began to panic. She didn't know what drowning felt like, but was positive this was it. Eyes opened impossibly wide, Sakura felt her toes squelching in her sandals. Strange. The cave was dry. All the water was outside.

Sparing a glance down, Sakura felt dizzy as she eyed the sword impaled in her stomach. A large stain of blood was slowly turning her red shirt shades darker, almost to black. Legs shaking, Sakura coughed a mouthful of blood, most of it gushing alarmingly down her chin. She had been dodging and swerving and avoiding Sasori's senbon spectacularly, to his extreme irritation. When she had gotten close enough, and she'd gathered chakra in her dominant hand to smash his face in, a sword had ejected from a compartment behind his chest, running through his heart and plunging into her stomach. The man was completely insane! He was willing to kill the both of them just for the sake of winning! The deranged smile he wore as death crept in sluggishly on the both of them alerted Sakura to the fact that more than a few screws were lose, or maybe completely missing. Gripping the sword with both hands, Sakura bit her lip to hold back a whimper as she slowly slid herself from the blade, hands wobbling with the effort.

Finally pulling herself off, Sakura's body and consciousness gave out from underneath her just as Lady Chiyo ran up to catch her.

"Sakura dear, are you alright!?" Chiyo asked frantically.

Sakura didn't respond. The girl had finally gotten close enough to land an actual hit on her grandson only to be ran through by a secret sword. She hadn't seen Sasori's puppet Hiruko in years, and was sure that the hidden compartment was and additive feature.

Their situation had become increasingly and alarmingly desperate in a matter of moments. She herself was almost completely out of chakra and years of being a kunoichi told her it wouldn't be long before she succumbed to the effects of over exhaustion. Two long, bony fingers pressed down on the pale expanse of Sakura's jugular, checking for a steady heart beat. Chiyo's own heart almost danced out of her ribcage when she felt the girls pulse steadily fading. Chiyo looked to the other side of the cabin, and was overcome with a wave of sadness and despair.

Itachi had pinned Naruto to the eastern cave wall by his throat, gazing at him with a chilling detachedness as the blond glared back hatefully through crimson slit eyes. Kakashi stood stock still behind the pair, as though trapped in a trance. He didn't seem to be aware of his surroundings, and the Sand elder suspected his stillness to be the work of the famed Tsukiyomi. She could also feel the Kyuubi's chakra rapidly fading, receding back under the seal's control. No. The Sharingan wielder was willing the chakra to fade, to Chiyo's shock.

' _How could that be?'_ The old woman thought fearfully.

Suddenly, the entire air was humming around the comatose and aware kunoichi's. Glancing up, Chiyo's eyes widened when she saw the hail of thick, corded puppet arms thundering down towards them. She heard crazed maniacal laughter coming from her grandson, and cast him a hateful yet pitying glance. Scooping up Sakura, the Sand elder jerked her limbs to attempt to move, only to find blue highlighted chakra strings attached to her person. The laughter got louder and more crazed.

"I took a leaflet out of your book, eh Granny! Chakra strings to keep you in place this time, so I could be sure you don't get away!" Sasori grinned with malicious glee, and flexed his fingers in what would look to most as feeble, but Chiyo knew to be deadly. The small amount of control he possessed would kill them both.

 _'I can't move!'_ Chiyo thought frantically, straining with effort to do something, anything.

"Die!" Sasori roared.

Chiyo squeezed her eyes shut, huddling Sakura's body close to hers to protect her as much as she could from the impending harm.

 _'I'm so sorry my child. I could not protect you or myself.'_ Chiyo thought sadly.

And as time seemed to slow, she waited for death.

A miracle happened then. Strange bursts of light could be seen through her shut eyelids.

Chiyo's head jerked up when she saw forest green painted finger nails gripping her poncho desperately. Looking down at the once dying kunoichi in her arms, Lady Chiyo's heart stopped when she took in Sakura's appearance. The girl's eyes were glowing a somehow menacing shade of roseate; pupil, iris, and the whites of her eyes were totally consumed in the glow. A grey diamond had appeared on the child's forehead, marking her pale skin.

Sakura's mouth opened and she spoke in a feminine voice that wasn't her own.

 _"Enough. You shall do no further harm."_


	2. Chapter 2

Slowly, her conscience stirred. Her eyes were closed but she knew she was alive. Sakura was aware of her own body. She could feel her arms connected to her shoulders, could slightly flex her thigh muscles, could stretch her fingers. But that was about it.

She felt no pain even though she knew she should. Her chakra was acting strange though. She could feel it, but it was as if someone had pressed the pause button on it's activity. Her chakra pathways and patterns weren't fluctuating or moving. They were just still, as if they were frozen. Slowly she opened her eyelids, and for a second she thought she was blind. Complete and utter darkness surrounded her. Her eyes darted back and forth, desperately searching for something, any source of light. Panic seized her system and crawled up her spine. It was a cold and crippling sensation, and it was starting to weigh her down. She didn't have the motor skills necessary to even scream out. Sakura's panic was closing in around her and pushing in from all sides. The darkness in turn steadily wrapped around her, filling her mouth, eyes, nose, everywhere.

Sakura's eyes were still darting wildly, unable to speak, only able to understand and comprehend, when her eyes locked on to a small, pale pink light; it glowed faintly in the darkness, almost a figment of the imagination it was so dim. But it was there. It called to her, teased her by being just out of reach. Sakura yearned to stretch her hand towards the faded light, to grab it and banish the suffocating darkness. She knew she had to grab it, otherwise she would be locked in limbo forever.

With all the strength and sheer will she could muster, Sakura strained towards the light. Slender yet weighted hands slowly and haltingly reached out and touched the mysterious light. The reaction was immediate. Sakura watched with a hypnotic focus as jets of stronger and more visible pink lines arced and raced into existence from the point of contact. The glow slowly ate up the darkness as lines criss-crossed and overlapped, tracing and drawing until Sakura realized just what the mysterious light was. The rose colored lines hadn't been moving randomly at all.

Sakura's blood froze in her body as she slowly picked out the hulking mass in the now dim darkness. In front of her presently slumbered a large, and beautiful fox. If it wasn't a demon Sakura would've said it was simply overgrown. The celestial animal had a head as large as her own house, with equally large triangular pointed ears slowly rising and falling with each deep inhalation. Sound rushed Sakura from all sides as if it had been waiting with bated breath. She heard a deep, rhythmic, and slow swishing noise like the world's largest broom was lazily at work. Sakura guessed it was the beast's tail. Air rushed out of the fox's muzzle, curling and steaming around her, and it smelled surprisingly sweet.

The pink light she had touched earlier was actually a coral colored diamond in the creatures fur. Even more strangely, the patterns in the animal's coat never seemed to sit still. They continuously changed, connecting with other patterns in a lethargic and dizzying haze of gentle light. Bringing her eyes back to the demon's face, Sakura was startled to find two luminous coral tinted orbs gazing right at her. Control flooded her limbs and Sakura staggered back, noting in the process that her feet were actually walking on the darkness.

When the demon spoke, the voice echoed in her mind, and it was so startling and intimate that Sakura physically flinched. ' _Do not fear me, child. I come to you in peace and wish to cause you no war.'_ The soothing lilt in the fox demon's voice was undeniably female.

Smooth as butter, it splashed over Sakura with an eerily calming effect. Sakura inwardly took a deep breath and stuttered, "W-who...who are you? Where exactly are we?"

The elegant fox shifted and the air around them seemed to thrum with energy, _'I am Kiyoma, a kindred fox spirit to the likes of the demon Kurama. I have transported us to an alternate plane of your mind, one reserved for focus and stillness.'_

"Wait," Sakura started slowly, "You're a fox demon-spirit being, you're in my head, and you also have nine tails. So if i'm understanding correctly you're Kurama's twin sister?" She ended it in a question because she was afraid to be right.

 _'That is correct, young kunoichi.'_

Sakura's brow twisted with confusion and unsettlement, "But I thought there was only one fox spirit in the world? I've only ever heard of Kurama from Naruto..."

Sakura mumbled the end part off to herself, but Kiyoma heard her. "Kurama and I are the earliest fox demons known to human kind. Humankind however, is unaware of _my presence, save for one infuriating man. I am the calmer and more balanced foil of my sibling. Kurama's festering hatred of humans and especially ninja has caused him to become unhinged and out of control. The fool had to be sealed away to keep him in check._ " Kiyoma seemed irritated that her twin brother went around terrorizing villages and it made Sakura smile slightly.

"Why exactly did you bring me here?" Sakura asked tentatively. Chance encounters of the supernatural kind happened to Naruto, yes, but to her? Never. The fact that she

Kiyoma seemed to tense at the question because her sleek large ears flicked in agitation. They whipped up a breeze as they moved. _"I do not have much time before a certain man finds my whereabouts. My large chakra is annoyingly easy to trace, and because that wretched man has stolen so much time on this earth he has become quite skilled at finding me. I have a proposition, young kunoichi. You would be wise to hear me out, seeing as your life force is fading as we speak."_

As if brought up by mentioning, Sakura's chest began to throb, right where Sasori had stabbed her earlier. The pain was slowly but steadily blooming out towards the rest of her body, while her mind prickled in discomfort. Sakura bent over and huffed shallowly.

Lifting her leaf green eyes to meet agitated fuchsia orbs, Sakura asked quietly, "What's your deal?"

Kiyoma fixed her with a penetrating gaze as she stared at Sakura, _"Child, I need you to become my jinjuriki. The only host that may contain me is a female who has an iron will like myself. If her mind is weak or unable, then housing my spirit will destroy her soul. If you succeed in taking me into your body, I will be able to hook my chakra pathways to yours. In layman speak, my chakra will be your chakra, only stronger and more bountiful. Upon resuming consciousness you will be healed of your fatal wounds, as is my expertise."_

Sakura's eyes widened and she stepped back. "You want me to house you? You're a demon! I could be killed on the grounds of numerous political reasons! I'd be hunted by the Akatsuki, just like Naruto, for the rest of my days! You said so yourself, someone guy is chasing you, which is why you need a host to hide! I can't! I won't!" The more she got worked up the more present her injuries seemed to become. Sakura was angry. But underneath her anger was fear. She knew that if she accepted, she would gain powers that shinobi dreamed of. But at the cost of a target on her back...?

 _"Be wise, girl,"_ Kiyoma warned, _"While you are currently in danger, do not forget that your friends will share your fate as well. Kurama is distressed. He can't protect the boy you call Naruto for much longer. The cloaked ninja that holds him is indeed talented to have warded off Kurama's malevolent chakra. Your other comrades are slowly falling as well. I can give you the power to protect them, but I cannot enter the contract without your acquiescence."_

The pinkette gritted her teeth in frustration. Her injuries were just reaching the threshold of unbearable. Sakura's stance had deteriorated to kneeling in the darkness before Kiyoma on one knee. Her vision was slowly becoming dim, with strange black spots in her vision. Internally checking her organs, Sakura cursed. Half of them were scrambled and cut to ribbons by Sasori, and the others were failing due to lack of blood flow. She'd either bleed out or suffocate. And she refused to die and leave any of her teammates to the Akatsuki. It was out of the question.

Steeling herself, Sakura stared directly into Kiyoma's eyes, "Fine. I give you permission to do whatever it is you need to."

Kiyoma's eyes closed in what Sakura believed to be relief. _"Thank you, brave child. Your courage and love for your comrades will be remembered for generations to come."_

The fox spirit's fuchsia eyes glowed brighter than ever and entranced Sakura's own emerald gaze.

The contract was complete.

Sakura gasped and sucked in a lung full of air, gripping the closest object next to her for balance, which just so happened to be Lady Chiyo. She felt Kiyoma's presence swirling inside of her, and as if of it's own volition, her mouth parted to speak.

 _"Enough. You shall do no further harm."_


	3. Chapter 3

_**a/n: writing this was tremendous fun! I got to really go all out with the scenes in here. Constructive criticism welcome! Any pointers or tips are cool too, or even if just want to pop in and say hey!**_

 _ **Read on!**_

The ground shook tremulously with the force of the explosion, hurling debris and sharp rocks every which way. Kakashi dropped and rolled under a stray boulder that sailed over his head and crashed into the opposite wall. Almost immediately he had to scramble and leap up to higher ground to avoid having a heaping slab of stone crash into his mid section. Surveying the unstable wreckage before him, Kakashi was relieved and terrified to see a body clad in an orange jumpsuit hanging just off the edge of a newly created sinkhole.

Working quickly, Kakashi made his way over to an unconscious Naruto, throwing him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. His foot sent pebbles skipping into the chasm, and he backed away from the edge.

 _'No need to tempt fate.'_ Kakashi thought nervously.

As relieved as he was at finding Naruto relatively safe, his worry hadn't alleviated. He had no idea where Lady Chiyo, Gaara, or Sakura were, or even if they were...he stopped himself. Kakashi knew he had the habit of pulling the worst from a situation due to his experience in the field. However, he believed in Chiyo, no matter how angry the wizened woman was at his father. But most of all he believed in Sakura. He believed in her training and in her intellect, and that she had somehow pulled through that explosion.

The silver haired captain scanned the demolished battlefield around him and stretched out his senses, searching for any chakra signatures that might be his comrades. His brows furrowed together when he sensed the swirling and almost...primordial presence that churned towards the middle of the cavern. It was powerful and enormous, but not entirely malevolent. His eyes opened in surprise when he felt small traces and bits of his female students chakra, as if this new and strong chakra were molding with hers.

Grimly, Kakashi set his jaw. Looking back, a little ways behind him Kakashi spotted two outcroppings that fused sharply together due to the heat of the explosion. It would have to do. The sensei turned teammate dragged his blond companion and placed him safely underneath the makeshift shelter. Circling around his area of the cave, he exhaled when he saw blood red hair peeking through rocks, dirt and debris. Making his way to the fallen Kazekage, Kakashi turned his body over and was taken aback to see the young man's skin flushed with color. Kakashi was now confused. He had been sure that when they arrived the boy's skin had been leathery and sallow in death. It had definitely set Naruto off...

A thought so wonderful struck him, that the seasoned ninja whipped around to see if it was true. Sure enough, undiluted energy leaked from the mouth of the hideous statue, making its way slowly but surely back into Gaara's skin.

 _'The ritual was interrupted,'_ Kakashi thought with sagging relief, ' _So his life force had no where to return but back to him.'_

Grabbing Gaara's body, he turned and made his way back to where Naruto was passed out. Placing him next to the other blond jinjuriki, Kakashi noted with another surge of relief that the worst of Naruto's wounds were sizzling with the Kyuubi's chakra. He was already starting the healing process.

Facing the ominous chakra towards the center of the cavern, Kakashi leapt away from rock to rock, slowly picking his way toward the tumultuous scene. Raging winds whipped around him, stinging his eyes and pelting his face with debris as he made his way forward. Soon, Kakashi came across a large and wide 50 foot crater indented deeply into the ground. Tremendous amounts of chakra were swirling from the center and Kakashi could feel more of Sakura's chakra, although it now seemed to be coming from her, rather than consuming her.

Grunting, the jounin made his way down the sides of the crater.

Sakura's whole body was on fire. Her nerve synapses were firing rapidly, frantically trying to process and regulate the excess amounts of chakra that we're practically seeping out of her pores. As she sat doubled over clutching someone, wonderful and terrible images flashed through her mind, through her soul. Her lungs felt like they were flipped inside out and that she was breathing backwards.

She gasped and sputtered for air, her head overloading with memories; memories of her childhood, chasing her best friend Ino through tall fields of grass. Her riding on her father's broad, strong shoulders. A warm and kind face dizzily grinning down into her cradle from so far above her. She remembered, remembered the short, stubby fingers pointing at her and laughing maliciously. It was too much, too much in one go. She bit her lip, holding in a scream as new thoughts, new feelings, and new emotions that weren't hers bombarded and clogged her senses.

Rolling over onto her back, Sakura struggled to stay awake as images flickered through her mind's eye: being mid-air amidst a thunderstorm, bolts of lightning and thunder seemingly bouncing off of her body. Large ancient ruins high in a thick mountain range, cicadas teeming and buzzing with life in the trees. Sensuous and rolling molten lava churning and roaring beneath overheated earth.

These images and memories weren't hers, she could feel them invading her being, molding with her and adding to her conscience.

Kiyoma's feminine voice melted into existence in her mind, _'The melding and anchoring of our souls is over, young child. The worst has come to pass. I am now apart of you, and you of me. We are two separate identities in one vessel, so to speak. For your brave and noble sacrifice, I will protect both of us and your loved ones at all costs.'_

 _'I need control,'_ Sakura thought out desperately, ' _I can't focus, I can't think, I can't save us with you storming around my brain like this. I need you to stop whatever it is that you're doing and just be_ still.'

Almost immediately after she thought the words, all the action going on in her body de crescendoed, as if someone had gone and turned the volume down on her senses. The muscles that were straining against her skin visibly relaxed while her body worked furiously to regulate almost everything back to normal. Her frantic eyes took in the fearful and astonished visage of Lady Chiyo, who was clutching Sakura's hand so tightly that both their hands had turned a deep maroon, flushed with blood. As for Kiyoma's presence, it had faded to a sort of dull hum underneath her skin, like a live wire being wrapped in rubber.

Allowing the old woman to help her stand, Sakura's eyes landed on an approaching Kakashi. Alarmed and now glowing green eyes widened, a scream unfurling in her stomach and falling from her lips as the Akatsuki member Kakuzu burst angrily from the rubble and sent a long tendril of one of his many stitches sailing towards Kakashi from behind.

 _'He can't see it,'_ Sakura panicked, _'It'll rip right through him!'_

It was then that Kiyoma took possession of her body. Bringing Sakura's bewildered hands up and aiming them at the enemy projectile, she forced her to slam them together. A sonic clap exploded from between Sakura's palms, sending forth a wave of pure air and power as the thick cord intent on slicing Kakashi in half was slammed into the opposite wall. Rocks shattered and fell from the wall, giving way to what would have been a beautiful view of forest green had they not been fighting for their lives. Kakashi sprung off the side of the crater, and with a few back flips to avoid Kakuzu's other slashing tendrils, he was by the two women's side.

"Sakura," Kakashi spoke lowly, taking out a kunai, "Would you care to explain what exactly is all that chakra you've amassed? And do not lie to me, because that kind of chakra is definitely not natural by human standards."

Tears started welling up in her eyes and Sakura stammered as she spoke, "S-Sensei, I think I messed up. A-And i'm not sure if I can fix it this time. I made a...a contract of sorts for this power, but i'll explain everything later. Right now we need to get out of here." Sakura begged.

Looking around at the vast cavern, Kakashi could feel the stirring consciouses in the buried underneath rubble Akatsuki members.

He narrowing his eyes at her sighed, "Fine. Later. Lady Chiyo, can you run?"

It was the old Sand elder's turn to narrow her eyes at Kakashi.

"Of course I can. These bones still have some kick in them. However, I do not know the whereabouts of Lord Kazekage or that spunky young fellow, Naruto." She ended sadly.

"That's quite alright. They're both safe, however our route to them has been made a little difficult...". Kakashi murmured, seeing as Kakuzu had now fully extracted himself from waist deep debris. The shelter Kakashi had hidden Naruto and Gaara in was behind Kakuzu.

The said man frowned and flicking his hand as if trying to swat away some pesky fly, four tendrils of stitches shot out from beneath the earth, ripping and tearing their way towards them.

"Sakura—" Kakashi called out.

"Im on it!"

They all seemed to know their roles, however unspoken. Kakashi took middle, Chiyo took the far right to retrieve their comrades from behind, and Sakura took the left. Sakura leapt, tucked, rolled and dodged swerving, lashing stitches, driving her foot into the earth and unleashing a current of chakra into the ground. This sent a fissure the size of her thigh racing towards the Akatsuki member, expelling a wave of sharp rocks and dust as it traveled. Kakashi's hands flashed through hand signs, chakra welling up familiarly for one of his signature jutsu's.

 _"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"_ He shouted.

A large and powerful water dragon rocketed around the corner of the cave entrance, and with amazing speed and agility smashed into Kakuzu, sending him flying into the opposite now flooded the battle field, and Deidara set off bombs to remove himself from the rubble. Kakashi and Sakura sprinted over to the now awake Naruto, who looked furious for being knocked out most of the fight.

"We are not staying to fight Naruto," Sakura snapped, "We don't have the man power and we're out numbered severely. Grab Gaara and let's go."

Eyes smoldering, Naruto growled, but did as he was told, hoisting Gaara's shoulder onto his own and shouldering his weight. Chiyo was wheezing now, as her injuries were starting to catch up to her.

"Lady Chiyo, just hold on a little bit longer. Sakura will be able to stablize you once we get to safer territory, but for right now i'm going to carry you." Kakashi spoke quickly, and scooped the old woman up. Adjusting her on his back he looked at Naruto and Sakura grimly before nodding.

Racing out of the mouth of the cave, Sakura felt herself jerk as her command over her body was seized from her.

 _'You must stop their pursuit, Sakura. Other wise it will only be a matter of time before they catch up to you.'_ Kiyoma said urgently.

Outside the cave, Kakashi sped to a halt to see what Sakura was held up on, as did Naruto and the others.

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled, "What are you doing?! Come on! We've gotta get outta here!"

Ignoring him, she cupped her fists together, and swinging them high above her head, she felt a large surge of power in her fists as she slammed them into the side of the cave, bringing down an avalanche of rock crashing and filling the mouth of the cave. A roar of anger could be heard from inside the cave, and what she guessed to be that freaky Iwa-ninja's explosives being thrown at the entrance. She didn't stick around to find out.

She dashed off to catch up with her squad.

 _ **a/n: I really liked writing this chapter! This is my longest one yet, so I hope you guys will read and review! Seeing as its Thanksgiving break, i've been freed up more to write. I know I haven't been working on my other stories as much, but if I have any faithful readers out there i'll be redoing chapters and updating them as well. So you might want to go back and reread the email, if you even get those alerts. Hopefully I can update again!**_

 _ **Love you guys!**_

 _ **Ja~ LilNyNyify**_


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